System and method for pooling lottery chances

ABSTRACT

A system and methods for facilitating player participation in a lottery. The present system and methods provide players with the ability to pool their purchases in order to increase their chances of winning. In addition, the system provides players with the ability to purchase tickets through the Internet and can automatically notify players when they have won, the amount they have won and provides the winnings securely into an electronic account.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a system for automatedprocessing of lottery ticket transactions, and more particularly, to asystem for processing lottery tickets through the Internet so thatwinning results can be pooled among the participants.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many state governments conduct lotteries. Government-conducted lotteriesoffer players the chance to win a large prize, and have the addedbenefit of increasing governmental revenues without burdening the publicwith additional taxes. In many instances, the revenue generated from agovernmental lottery is dedicated, at least in part, to a particularpurpose or goal, such as improving the education system or reducingproperty taxes.

Typically, government-conducted lottery systems utilize a centrallottery computer to communicate with remote dedicated lottery terminals.A player typically selects numbers on a lottery “sense mark slip,” andthe lottery terminal operator inserts the sense mark slip into a readerat the lottery terminal, which optically reads the sense mark slip usinga known mark sensing process. Alternatively, most lottery systems offerautomatic lottery number generation features, commonly referred to as“quick-pick” systems, which randomly select lottery numbers on behalf ofthe player. The dedicated lottery terminal then communicates theplayer's selected numbers to the central lottery computer for validationand storage. After the lottery numbers have been stored, the dedicatedlottery terminal, under the direction of the central lottery computer,prints and issues the official lottery ticket.

One popular lottery game, commonly referred to as “Mega-Millions,”typically requires the player to choose five numbers between one andfifty-six, plus a “Mega-Ball” number between one and forty-six. Theselected group of numbers are then compared to the winning lotterynumbers, which have been randomly selected, at some specified time anddate after purchase of the lotto ticket. To win a prize, theplayer-selected lotto ticket numbers must match all or some of thewinning lottery numbers.

If the jackpot prize is not awarded for a particular lotto drawing, thejackpot prize value typically rolls over to increase the jackpot for thesubsequent drawing. Thus, jackpots increase from week to week as no onewins. The amount of the jackpot prize is typically determined based on asales trend from the prior year. It has been found that many people onlybuy lottery tickets when the jackpot exceeds a certain amount. Thus, asthe jackpot prize gets larger, there is a dramatic increase in thenumber of tickets sold. Occasionally, when jackpots have risen toparticularly large amounts, some lottery systems have not had sufficientcapacity to meet the increased ticket demand.

Lotto drawings are typically conducted on a periodic basis, with manystate lotteries conducting “lotto” drawings as often as twice per week.Previously, players were required to appear in person at a dedicatedlottery terminal to purchase their lottery tickets for each lotterydrawing. In order to increase ticket sales, as well ascustomer-convenience, many lottery systems now offer subscription salesof lottery tickets, which automatically enter a player in the lotterygame for a predefined number of weeks, often at a discounted price. Butgenerally speaking, unless such arrangements are made in advance, when alarge jackpot develops, a person wishing to enter must appear at anauthorized ticket sales agent to obtain a ticket.

Thus, during times of peak demand, players are met with longer lines atlottery terminals, and generally find it more frustrating to obtain alottery ticket. In fact, since some lotteries are offered by certainstates, but not others, players would have to travel to remotedestinations in order to purchase tickets in advance. Rather thanproviding an environment that encourages such infrequent players tobecome regular players, the difficulty associated with obtaining alottery ticket for a large jackpot often discourages players fromreturning. While the subscription sale of lottery tickets allows regularplayers to enroll in all drawings for a predefined period, and therebyavoid a time-consuming trip to the lottery terminal when the jackpotincreases, conventional lottery subscription sale systems do not providea solution for infrequent players who only want to enroll in drawingsassociated with larger jackpot prizes.

Furthermore, since lottery tickets are typically bearer instruments,lottery participants must keep their tickets in a safe location.Additionally, the participant must check the results of the lotteryagainst their ticket. If the lottery participant forgets to check theirticket within an allotted time period and make a claim, or otherwisediscards the instrument, the participant will forfeit their potentialprize.

As apparent from the above-described deficiencies with conventionalsystems for processing lottery ticket transactions, a need exists for alottery ticket sale system that allows a player to buy lottery ticketsin advance without being physically present. A further need exists for asystem that increases ticket sales, as well as player convenience,particularly at times of peak demand. Still a further need exists toprovide a user with an automated ability to be notified that theirticket has won. Finally, there exists a need for players to reliablypool ticket resources without incurring legal disputes about thepartnership formed to share in their winnings.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The system and methods of the present application provide several uniqueand heretofore unavailable features to players in a lottery. Rather thanmanually purchasing tickets, the player can purchase their ticketsonline thorough a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Playerscan submit their tickets to a lottery pool in order to increase theirchances of winning the lottery. In addition, the system canautomatically notify players when they have won, the amount that theyhave won and can provide their winnings securely into an electronicaccount.

In one aspect, the present invention is directed to an apparatus forfacilitating player participation in a lottery, said apparatuscomprising:

a Web server connected to the Internet containing software that, whenexecuted by said Web server, causes said Web server to:

provide the player with access to an account;

securely electronically transfer funds between the account and aplayer's source of funds; and permit said player to participate in alottery pool wherein said lottery tickets entered and winnings from saidtickets are shared among pool participants.

In another aspect of the present invention, said software further causessaid Web server to permit said player to enter lottery numbers purchasedby said player.

In another aspect of the present invention, said software further causessaid Web server to determine if a ticket won.

In another aspect of the present invention, said software further causessaid Web server to notify the player of an amount that said player won.

In another aspect of the present invention, said software further causessaid Web server to automatically transfer a pool participant's winningshare into the account.

In another aspect of the present invention, said apparatus furthercomprises a computing interface coupled to said central state lotterycomputer and to said Web server that submits lottery ticket numbers tosaid central lottery computer and provides purchase confirmationinformation of lottery tickets purchased to said Web server.

In another aspect of the present invention, said software further causessaid Web server to automatically purchase a predefined number of ticketsfor said pool participant.

In another aspect of the present invention, said software further causessaid Web server to automatically purchase tickets for said poolparticipant when the probabilistic worth of a ticket is more than aprice to purchase said ticket.

In another aspect of the present invention, said pool consists of asingle player.

In another aspect, the present invention is directed to a method ofplaying a lottery, said method comprising:

establishing an account for receipt and withdraw of electronic funds;

purchasing a lottery ticket; and

entering said ticket in a lottery pool, wherein said lottery ticketsentered and winnings from said tickets are shared among poolparticipants.

In another aspect of the present invention, entering the ticketcomprises entering lottery numbers of a ticket purchased by said player.

In another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprisesautomatically determining if a ticket won.

In another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprisesautomatically notifying the player of an amount that said player won.

In another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprisesautomatically transferring a pool participant's winning share into theaccount.

In another aspect of the present invention, the ticket is automaticallypurchased.

In another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprisesautomatically purchasing a predefined number of tickets for said poolparticipant.

In another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprisesautomatically purchase tickets for said pool participant when theprobabilistic worth of a ticket is more than a price to purchase saidticket.

In another aspect, the present invention is directed to an electronicmedia containing a program software product, that, when loaded andexecuted on a general purpose computer, causes the computer to:

establish an account for receipt and withdraw of electronic funds;

permit a player to enter lottery numbers of a ticket purchased by saidplayer;

permit a player to enter said ticket in a lottery pool, wherein saidlottery tickets entered and winnings from said tickets are shared amongpool participants;

determine if a ticket won; and

notify the player of an amount that said player won.

In another aspect of the present invention, the program software productcontained thereon, when loaded and executed on a general purposecomputer, causes the computer to purchase a lottery ticket for theplayer using funds from the account.

In another aspect of the present invention, the program software productcontained thereon, when loaded and executed on a general purposecomputer, causes the computer to perform one or more of the followingtasks:

transfer a pool participant's winning share into the account;

purchase a predefined number of tickets for said pool participant; and

purchase tickets for said pool participant when the probabilistic worthof a ticket is more than a price to purchase said ticket.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram that illustrates a computer system thatfacilitates Internet-based lottery ticket sales;

FIG. 2 illustrates information comprising an electronic lottery ticket;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram that illustrates a preferred lottery Webserver;

FIG. 4 illustrates a lottery ticket database;

FIG. 5 illustrates a pooled lottery ticket database;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart that illustrates a lottery process;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart that illustrates a ticket sale transactionprocess;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart that illustrates a pooled ticket evaluationprocess;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart that illustrates a winning ticket evaluationprocess; and

FIG. 10 illustrates examples of recording media.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a system and methods for facilitatingthe participation of a player in a lottery. In a preferred embodiment,the system provides players with the ability to pool their purchases inorder to increase their chances of winning. In an alternative preferredembodiment, the present invention permits the player to purchase oflottery tickets through the Internet. In addition, the system canautomatically notify players when they have won, the amount that theyhave won and can provide their winnings securely into an electronicaccount.

Additionally, the present invention may be described herein in terms offunctional block components, code listings, optional selections andvarious processing steps. It should be appreciated that such functionalblocks may be realized by any number of hardware and/or softwarecomponents configured to perform the specified functions. For example,the present invention may employ various integrated circuit components,e.g., memory elements, processing elements, logic elements, look-uptables, and the like, which may carry out a variety of functions underthe control of one or more microprocessors or other control devices.

Similarly, the software elements of the present invention may beimplemented with any programming or scripting language such as C, C++,C#, Java, COBOL, assembler, PERL, Python or-the like, with the variousalgorithms being implemented with any combination of data structures,objects, processes, routines or other programming elements. The objectcode created can be executed by any computer having an Internet WebBrowser, on a variety of operating systems including Windows, Mac orLinux.

Further, it should be noted that the present invention may employ anynumber of conventional techniques for data transmission, signaling, dataprocessing, network control, and the like.

It should be appreciated that the particular implementations shown anddescribed herein are illustrative of the invention and its best mode andare not intended to otherwise limit the scope of the present inventionin any way. Indeed, for the sake of brevity, conventional datanetworking, application development and other functional aspects of thesystems (and components of the individual operating components of thesystems) may not be described in detail herein. Furthermore, theconnecting lines shown in the various figures contained herein areintended to represent exemplary functional relationships and/or physicalor virtual couplings between the various elements. It should be notedthat many alternative or additional functional relationships or physicalor virtual connections may be present in a practical electronic datacommunications system.

As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, the presentinvention may be embodied as a method, a data processing system, adevice for data processing, and/or a computer program product.Accordingly, the present invention may take the form of an entirelysoftware embodiment, an entirely hardware embodiment, or an embodimentcombining aspects of both software and hardware. Furthermore, thepresent invention may take the form of a computer program product on acomputer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program codemeans embodied in the storage medium. Any suitable computer-readablestorage medium may be utilized, including hard disks, CD-ROM, opticalstorage devices, magnetic storage devices, and/or the like.

The present invention is described below with reference to blockdiagrams and flowchart illustrations of methods, apparatus (e.g.,systems), and computer program products according to various aspects ofthe invention. It will be understood that each functional block of theblock diagrams and the flowchart illustrations, and combinations offunctional blocks in the block diagrams and flowchart illustrations,respectively, can be implemented by computer program instructions. Thesecomputer program instructions may be loaded onto a general purposecomputer, special purpose computer, or other programmable dataprocessing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructionsthat execute on the computer or other programmable data processingapparatus create means for implementing the functions specified in theflowchart block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in acomputer-readable memory that can direct a computer or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readablememory produce an article of manufacture including instruction meansthat implement the function specified in the flowchart block or blocks.The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer orother programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series ofoperational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmableapparatus to produce a computer-implemented process such that theinstructions that execute on the computer or other programmableapparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in theflowchart block or blocks.

Accordingly, functional blocks of the block diagrams and flowchartillustrations support combinations of means for performing the specifiedfunctions, combinations of steps for performing the specified functions,and program instruction means for performing the specified functions. Itwill also be understood that each functional block of the block diagramsand flowchart illustrations, and combinations of functional blocks inthe block diagrams and flowchart illustrations, can be implemented byeither special purpose hardware-based computer systems that perform thespecified functions or steps, or suitable combinations of specialpurpose hardware and computer instructions.

One skilled in the art will also appreciate that, for security reasons,any databases, systems, or components of the present invention mayconsist of any combination of databases or components at a singlelocation or at multiple locations, wherein each database or systemincludes any of various suitable security features, such as firewalls,access codes, encryption, de-encryption, compression, decompression,and/or the like.

The scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claimsand their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given herein.For example, the steps recited in any method claims may be executed inany order and are not limited to the order presented in the claims.Moreover, no element is essential to the practice of the inventionunless specifically described herein as “critical” or “essential.”

System Architecture

FIG. 1 is a block diagram that illustrates a computer system that showsa lottery ticket system 100 for processing lottery ticket transactions,including the acceptance and validation of play entries, for example, ina state lottery. The lottery ticket system 100 includes a Web browser110 in communication through the Internet 120 with a Web server 130,such as an illustrative lottery server 300, discussed below inconjunction with FIG. 3, an interface 140 for transferring informationbetween Web server 130 and a central lottery computer 150.

According to a feature of the present invention, the lottery ticketsystem 100 permits a player to enter lottery numbers through Web browser110 for a ticket purchased by the player. In this fashion, Web server130 will record the numbers that the player has entered. After thelottery drawing has been conducted, Web server 130 can compare thenumbers entered by the player with winning numbers obtained over theInternet. As with conventional lottery systems, the lottery ticketsystem 100 may automatically notify the player through means well knownin the art, such as email, text messaging or the like, that the player'sticket has won and may optionally include a mechanism for automaticallynotifying pool participants and regular players of prize winnings.

According to a further feature of the invention, the lottery ticketsystem 100 preferably permits a player to purchase lottery tickets (i)individually and; (ii) to enter the ticket purchased into a pool,whereby the player's lottery ticket is automatically shared among thepool participants. In a further feature of the invention, the player'slottery ticket is automatically purchased for the player whenever theprobabilistic worth of a ticket exceeds the purchase price. According toa feature of the present invention, the lottery ticket system 100permits the player to specify the numbers to be played for each game.

The Web server 130 may comprise conventional hardware and software, asmodified herein to carry out the functions and operations describedbelow. Web server 130 and central lottery computer 150 transmitdigitally encoded data and other information between one another throughinterface 140. The interface 140 preferably comprises equipment thatemulates a standard lottery terminal as is commonly found in aneighborhood lottery vendor's shop. Communications between interface 140and either Web server 130 and central lottery computer 150 may bephysically facilitated through cable or wireless links on whichelectronic signals can propagate, and may be embodied, for example, as(i) a dedicated wide area network (WAN), (ii) a telephone network,including the combination of local and long distance wire or wirelessfacilities and switches known as the public switched telephone network(“PSTN”), or (iii) the Internet. The data and other informationtransmitted by Web server 130 to the central lottery computer 150represent the information commonly provided by the vendor's terminalreplaced by the interface. Likewise, the data and other informationtransmitted by the central lottery computer 150 to the standard lotteryterminal may represent play results and an acknowledgement or validationof play information for printing of an official lottery ticket by thelottery terminal, which is now passed along to Web server 130 for latertransmission to the player.

Once the central lottery computer 150 has validated and stored theplayer's numbers and any activation conditions, in a manner discussedfurther below, the Web server 130 preferably issues an electroniclottery ticket to the player. A sample lottery ticket is shown in FIG.2.

As shown in FIG. 2, each lottery ticket 210 indicates the lotterynumbers to be played in a field 220, as well as a ticket identificationnumber 230 and the date of the drawing 240. In an alternativeembodiment, a lottery ticket may be issued by a standard lotteryterminal, but the player may enter the numbers on the ticket through Webbrowser 110 into Web server 130. Other information such as the drawingdate for the ticket may also be selected.

FIG. 3 illustrates a Web server of the preferred embodiment. Web server300 preferably includes a processor 310 and related memory, such as adata storage device 320. The processor 310 may be embodied as a singleprocessor, or a number of processors operating in parallel. The datastorage device 320 and/or a read only memory (ROM) are operable to storeone or more instructions, which the processor 310 is operable toretrieve, interpret and execute. The processor 310 preferably includes acontrol unit, an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), and a local memory storagedevice, such as, for example, an instruction cache or a plurality ofregisters, in a known manner. The control unit is operable to retrieveinstructions from the data storage device 320 or ROM. The ALU isoperable to perform a plurality of operations needed to carry outinstructions. The local memory storage device is operable to providehigh-speed storage used for storing temporary results and controlinformation.

The data storage device 320 preferably includes a database comprisingaccounts 350. Players have accounts in database 350 that represent acash balance capable of being maintained by the player throughelectronic funds transfer in a secure manner through the Internet, as iswell known in the art.

As discussed further below in conjunction with FIG. 6, the data storagedevice 320 preferably includes software for a lottery process 600.Generally, lottery process 600 receives play information from a playerthrough the Internet, for example, and communicates with the centrallottery computer 150 via the interface 140 to validate and store theplay information and thereafter issue an electronic lottery ticket 210to the player.

As discussed further below in conjunction with FIGS. 4 and 5,respectively, the data storage device 320 preferably includes a ticketdatabase 400 and pooled ticket database 500. The ticket database 400preferably stores information on each ticket that is currently active inthe lottery ticket system 100. The pooled ticket database 500 preferablystores information on each ticket which has been contributed to a poolin the lottery ticket system 100.

In addition, as discussed further below in conjunction with FIGS. 7through 9, the data storage device 420 preferably also includes a ticketsale transaction process 700, a pooled ticket evaluation process 800 anda winning ticket evaluation process 900. Generally, the ticket saletransaction process 700, shown in FIG. 7, coordinates lottery tickettransactions, such as the acceptance, validation and storage of playentries, including the player's numbers and identity. The pooled ticketevaluation process 800, shown in FIG. 8, preferably evaluates pendinglottery tickets to enter confirmed tickets into a pool. The winningticket evaluation process 900, shown in FIG. 9, preferably compares thenumbers associated with each lottery ticket for a given drawing withwinning number combinations to identify winning tickets and associatedprize amounts. Pooled ticket evaluation process 800, in conjunction withwinning ticket evaluation process 900, determines the amount of theproceeds from the pooled tickets.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary ticket database 400 that preferablystores information on each ticket which is currently active in thelottery ticket system 100. The ticket database 400 maintains a pluralityof records, such as records 405-420, each associated with a differentactive ticket. For each active ticket identified by ticket number infield 425, the ticket database 400 includes an indication of the gametype and numbers selected in fields 430 and 435. In addition, the ticketdatabase 400 preferably records the ticket purchase date, drawing date,merchant identifier and whether the ticket has been confirmed in fields440 through 455, respectively.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary pooled ticket database 500 thatpreferably stores information on each ticket which is currentlycontributed to a lottery pool in the lottery ticket system 100. Theticket database 500 maintains a plurality of records, such as records505-520, each associated with a different active ticket contributed to aparticular pool. For each confirmed ticket identified by ticket numberin field 525, the pooled ticket database 500 includes an indication ofthe pool to which the ticket has been contributed in field 530. Inaddition, the pooled ticket database 500 preferably records the date theticket was entered into the pool in field 535.

System Operation

The following discussion describes the methods performed by theinventive system. To provide context, the operation of an exemplary,preferred embodiment of software processes 600-900 are described.

As discussed above, system 100 preferably executes a lottery process600, shown in FIG. 6, to receive play information from a player, forexample, through interaction with Web server 130. Lottery process 600receives information about tickets purchased by the player, eitherthrough the player's data entry, by receiving information about theticket from Lottery Computer 150 or by direct purchase of the ticketthrough system 100. As illustrated in FIG. 6, lottery process 600 beginsin step 610 by the player authenticating his/her identity, upon logginginto Web server 130. In step 620, lottery process 600 determines whetherthe player wishes to purchase a ticket through Web server 130, or merelywants to provide data to Web server 130 that indicates the purchase of aticket by conventional means. If a ticket has not yet been purchased,control is transferred to ticket sale process 700. If a ticket hasalready been purchased by the player, in step 630, lottery process 600determines whether or not it can obtain data concerning the ticket fromLottery Computer 150.

If data is not available from Lottery Computer 150, in step 640,information concerning the specification of the lottery ticket purchasedby the player is provided by the player. The player provides informationis that contained in a record of ticket database 400, and includes theticket number, game type, numbers selected and purchase date. Thisinformation is then stored in ticket database 400. This information willbe used to confirm the ticket later, as described in connection withstep 690.

If data is available from Lottery Computer 150, in step 650, the playerprovides the ticket identification number, which is then transmitted toLottery Computer 150. In step 660, Lottery Computer 150 responds bysupplying information through interface 140 to Web server 130 concerningthe ticket purchased by the player. The supplied information includesthe ticket number, game type, numbers selected, purchase date, drawingdate and merchant identifier code. In step 670, this information isstored in ticket database 400.

In step 680, Web server 130 generates an electronic ticket 210comprising the appropriate ticket information including the ticketidentification number, game selected and numbers played. Thisinformation may be printed by the player as a hardcopy record.

Since tickets are bearer instruments, the physical ticket purchased bythe player must be sent in for validation before the actual drawing, inorder for the ticket to be confirmed. In step 690, the ticket receivedfrom player is validated against the information contained in LotteryComputer 150 to guard against fraud. Alternatively, winning tickets maybe redeemed in accordance with winning ticket process 900 to ensuretheir validity. However, such unconfirmed tickets are not eligible to besubmitted for entry into a ticket pool.

As discussed above, Web server 130 preferably executes a ticket saleprocess 700, shown in FIG. 7, to coordinate lottery ticket transactions,such as the acceptance, validation and storage of play entries,including the player's numbers. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the ticketsale process 700 begins the processes embodying the principles of thepresent invention either during step 710, upon an automaticdetermination that lottery tickets should be purchased, as describedbelow, or via lottery process 600, wherein the player has indicated thathe is not entering data for a ticket purchased in the conventionalmanner, and seeks to initiate a ticket purchase through Web server 130.

Web server 130 will then determine the player's transaction data duringstep 720, including the number of games played, game type, numbersselected per game played and purchase time and date. It is noted that ina “quick-pick” implementation, the play numbers will preferably berandomly generated, either by Central Lottery Computer 150 or by Webserver 130.

In step 730, ticket sale process 700 will then transmit the requiredinformation through interface 140 to Central Lottery Computer 150. Instep 740, ticket sale process 700 receives a response from CentralLottery Computer 150 confirming the purchase of the requested ticket.Additionally, Central Lottery Computer 150 will provide information viainterface 140 to Web server 130 concerning the ticket purchased. In step750, ticket sale transaction process 700 will parse the response dataprovided and will access the ticket database 400 and create anappropriate number of new records in the ticket database 400 for eachactive ticket. Thereafter, the cost of the ticket is deducted from theplayer's account during step 760 for each game played, before the ticketnumber, numbers selected and game type information is stored in theappropriate new record in the ticket database 400. The ticket data isthen transmitted to the player during step 770 as an electronic ticket210 before program control ends.

In addition, in step 710, the player may specify pre-determined criteriafor purchasing a ticket. For example, if the amount of the jackpot prizealready exceeds the odds of winning the jackpot times the cost of theticket, then the probabilistic value of the ticket exceeds the cost, andthe player may choose to have a ticket automatically purchased andentered in the ticket database 400. Players may choose to purchasetickets automatically on a periodic basis, and may also specify whethertickets automatically purchased should be entered into a pool.

At the request of a player, Web server 130 preferably executes a ticketpooling process 800. As shown in FIG. 8, during step 810 Web server 130ensures that the ticket the player seeks to enter into a pool isconfirmed, as discussed in lottery process 600 above. If the player issubmitting a confirmed ticket, in step 820 Web server 130 queries whichpool the player wishes to submit the confirmed ticket into. Informationconcerning the pooled ticket is entered into pooled ticket database 500.In step 830, an account is created for each pool in account database 350and winning ticket evaluation process 900 is invoked for all pooledtickets in database 500. Finally, in step 840, the accumulated winningsfrom all pooled tickets collected during winning ticket evaluationprocess 900 is transferred out from the pool account to each of the poolparticipant's accounts. The distributions are made in a pro-rata shareaccording to the number and value of the tickets pooled, and the poolaccount is then deleted from account database 350. In a preferredembodiment, pool participants are notified and provided with a report ofthe activity generated by the pool.

Web server 130 preferably executes a winning ticket evaluation process900, shown in FIG. 9, to identify winning tickets and associated prizeamounts. As illustrated in FIG. 9, the winning ticket evaluation process900 initially accesses the set of winning numbers during step 910 andthe ticket database 400 during step 920. A test is then performed duringstep 920 to determine if the tickets are confirmed, as explained abovein connection with lottery process 600. If a ticket in ticket database400 is confirmed, the ticket information is processed via LotteryComputer 150 during step 930 to confirm that the ticket is a winningticket. Alternatively, such winning ticket confirmation may be skippedin favor of merely redeeming the winning tickets during step 940. Theticket is a physical ticket, the redemption most likely will also haveto be processed manually. If it is determined during step 930 that theticket was not a winning ticket, the associated record in the ticketdatabase 400 may be deleted.

Next, the proceeds from the winning ticket are processed. A test isperformed during step 950 to determine whether the ticket is a pooledticket. If the ticket is pooled, an account created for the pool iscredited with the proceeds during step 970. If, however, it isdetermined during step 950 that the ticket was not contributed to apool, then in step 960 the proceeds are credited to the player'saccount. In a preferred embodiment, during step 960, the player isnotified that they have won the lottery.

Software on Media

In the specification, the term “media” means any medium that can recorddata therein. FIG. 10 illustrates examples of recording media.

The term “media” includes, for instance, a disk shaped media for 1001such as CD-ROM (compact disc-read only memory), magneto optical disc orMO, digital video disc-read only memory or DVD-ROM, digital videodisc-random access memory or DVD-RAM, a floppy disc 1002, a memory chip1004 such as random access memory or RAM, read only memory or ROM,erasable programmable read only memory or E-PROM, electrical erasableprogrammable read only memory or EE-PROM, a rewriteable card-type readonly memory 1005 such as a smart card, a magnetic tape, a hard disc1003, and any other suitable means for storing a program therein.

A recording media storing a program for accomplishing the abovementioned apparatus maybe accomplished by programming functions of theabove mentioned apparatuses with a programming language readable by acomputer 1000 or processor, and recording the program on a media such asmentioned above.

A server equipped with a hard disk drive may be employed as a recordingmedia. It is also possible to accomplish the present invention bystoring the above mentioned computer program on such a hard disk in aserver and reading the computer program by other computers through anetwork.

As a computer processing device 1000, any suitable device for performingcomputations in accordance with a computer program may be used. Examplesof such devices include a personal computer, a laptop computer, amicroprocessor, a programmable logic device, or an application specificintegrated circuit.

Having thus described at least illustrative embodiments of theinvention, various modifications and improvements will readily occur tothose skilled in the art and are intended to be within the scope of theinvention. Accordingly, the foregoing description is by way of exampleonly and is not intended as limiting. The invention is limited only asdefined in the following claims and the equivalents thereto.

1. An apparatus for facilitating player participation in a lottery, saidapparatus comprising: a Web server connected to the Internet containingsoftware that, when executed by said Web server, causes said Web serverto: provide the player with access to an account; securelyelectronically transfer funds between the account and a player's sourceof funds; and permit said player to participate in a lottery poolwherein said lottery tickets entered and winnings from said tickets areshared among pool participants.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, whereinsaid software further causes said Web server to permit said player toenter lottery numbers purchased by said player.
 3. The apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein said software further causes said Web server todetermine if a ticket won.
 4. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein saidsoftware further causes said Web server to notify the player of anamount that said player won.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein saidsoftware further causes said Web server to automatically transfer a poolparticipant's winning share into the account.
 6. The apparatus of claim1, further comprising a computing interface coupled to said centralstate lottery computer and to said Web server that submits lotteryticket numbers to said central lottery computer and provides purchaseconfirmation information of lottery tickets purchased to said Webserver.
 7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said software furthercauses said Web server to automatically purchase a predefined number oftickets for said pool participant.
 8. The apparatus of claim 7, whereinsaid software further causes said Web server to automatically purchasetickets for said pool participant when the probabilistic worth of aticket is more than a price to purchase said ticket.
 9. The apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein said pool consists of a single player.
 10. A method ofplaying a lottery, said method comprising: establishing an account forreceipt and withdraw of electronic funds; purchasing a lottery ticket;and entering said ticket in a lottery pool, wherein said lottery ticketsentered and winnings from said tickets are shared among poolparticipants.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein entering the ticketcomprises entering lottery numbers of a ticket purchased by said player.12. The method of claim 11, further comprising automatically determiningif a ticket won.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprisingautomatically notifying the player of an amount that said player won.14. The method of claim 10, further comprising automaticallytransferring a pool participant's winning share into the account. 15.The method of claim 10 wherein the ticket is automatically purchased.16. The method of claim 15, further comprising automatically purchasinga predefined number of tickets for said pool participant.
 17. The methodof claim 16, further comprising automatically purchase tickets for saidpool participant when the probabilistic worth of a ticket is more than aprice to purchase said ticket.
 18. An electronic media containing aprogram software product, that, when loaded and executed on a generalpurpose computer, causes the computer to: establish an account forreceipt and withdraw of electronic funds; permit a player to enterlottery numbers of a ticket purchased by said player; permit a player toenter said ticket in a lottery pool, wherein said lottery ticketsentered and winnings from said tickets are shared among poolparticipants; determine if a ticket won; and notify the player of anamount that said player won.
 19. The electronic media of claim 18,wherein the program software product contained thereon, when loaded andexecuted on a general purpose computer, causes the computer to purchasea lottery ticket for the player using funds from the account.
 20. Theelectronic media of claim 18, wherein the program software productcontained thereon, when loaded and executed on a general purposecomputer, causes the computer to perform one or more of the followingtasks: transfer a pool participant's winning share into the account;purchase a predefined number of tickets for said pool participant; andpurchase tickets for said pool participant when the probabilistic worthof a ticket is more than a price to purchase said ticket.